Rock n Roll Graffiti is a weekly column spotlighting engaging music personalities. The column stresses not only rock 'n' roll, but blues, jazz, country and folk. Stories feature a nostalgic look at Michigan's stars, local musicians and beloved rock legends, all from a personal, Upper Peninsula perspective. Music memories are recalled with an entertaining presentation of facts, a dash of opinion, and a bit of humor, all meant to bring a smile or nod of acknowledgment from the reader.

Thursday, November 17, 2005

Waiting for Pink Floyd memories

Nobody can accuse the legendary Pink Floyd and ex-bandmate (think: leader) Roger Waters of haste. Both have prominently resurfaced as rock icons due to the release of new material which has been years in the making.

Waters spent ten years working on "Ca Ira," an opera about the French Revolution which has quickly became a top selling classical title.

Pink Floyd, meanwhile, on Dec. 6 will release the "Pulse" DVD chronicling their final tour in 1994.

Much to the surprise of fans, Pink Floyd and Waters-- who talk to each other only through their lawyers-- reunited on July 2 at Hyde Park in London for a brief set during the Live 8 concerts. Waters announced, however, there would be no permanent reunion.

The four disc Live 8 DVD preserves their new performances of "Speak to Me," "Breathe," "Money," "Wish You Were Here," and "Comfortably Numb." The last time Pink Floyd had performed with Waters was during 1983's "Final Cut" tour. Sadly, the 22 years since have been filled with legal and personal feuds.

That wasn't the case when "Dark Side of the Moon" (DSotM) was released on March 2, 1973. The entire band contributed songs to this classic concept album which dealt with the pressures of life and proved very popular with radio programmers.

In fact, generations of fans are familiar with this album. It peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard magazine album chart and is the second best selling disc of all time, with an estimated 40 million copies sold worldwide. Even at this late date, the album sells a phenomenal 8,000 copies a week. It's said one in every 14 Americans under the age of 50 owns a copy.

The group followed up in 1979 with another opus, a two-disc multi-million selling set titled "The Wall."

With that back-drop, Pink Floyd fans from the Upper Peninsula traveled by bus on July 3, 1994 to see the band perform at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. Without Waters, the band played uncompromising versions of songs from the then-new "Division Bell" as well as DSotM in its entirety.

Despite rain, the crowd enjoyed a great show featuring David Gilmour, Nick Mason, Richard Wright and an eight-person back-up band. The "Pulse" DVD will feature the concert's back-screen stage projections and numerous videos.

Our willingness to endure long hours of bus travel was primed by Pink Floyd's classic albums as well as an incident from the early 1990s.

It happened on a forgotten date circa 1993. Two well dressed women entered the Record Rack, then located at 1107 Ludington St. They looked around and complimented owner Sue Seymour on the collection of rock 'n' roll memorabilia displayed on the walls. The women, with British accents, mentioned they were "on holiday," traveling from Detroit to Minneapolis by car.

A few minutes after they left, a man wearing a brown leather bomber jacket, entered the store. He checked under "P" and "W" in the compact disc section (presumably for Pink Floyd and Roger Waters titles) and looked about. He then approached Sue at the check out counter and mentioned the store's display of signed photographs.

"I see you have a lot of autographs," the man said. "Yes, I do," Sue responded. "Would you like mine?" the man asked. "O.K., but who are you?" Sue replied.

"Give me a piece of paper and pen," the man said. He scribbled a note and quickly left. It read: "You're not just another brick in the wall. (signed) Roger Waters, Pink Floyd." Sue later confirmed Waters' identity through photos and comparisons with other autographs.

Meeting Roger Waters and seeing Pink Floyd perform would probably top any fan's want list. Now we've finally got the music and video to back-up the memories.

U. P. Jukebox

About the music on this blog

Michigan's rock history concentrates on the southeastern part of the state, deservedly so. Although the Detroit area produced some great music in the 1960s, the Upper Peninsula's contribution to the rock 'n' roll revolution of the era shouldn't be discounted. Sure the U. P. is isolated and sparsely peopled, with only three percent of the state's population. But, the fact that no band based north of the Mackinac Bridge registered a Top 40 hit in the 1960s was due to a conspiracy of geography, not a lack of quality material. Groups from across the region issued strong 45 rpm singles in their attempts to gain greater recognition and national fame as the rock 'n' roll spirit pervaded the U. P.

There were the Excels and French Church from Marquette, Riot Squad and Prophets of Doom from Escanaba, Rob Kirk and the Word and Renaissance Fair from Sault Ste. Marie, the Henchmen VI and Vigilantes from tiny Ontonagon, Joey Gee and the Come-ons and the Ravelles from Iron Mountain. Menominee had the Benders, Alston had the Rhythm Rockers, Kingsford boasted the Lexington Project, Ironwood contributed Danny and the Galaxies and Houghton touted the Kinetics.

Today, most of these songs are quite hard to come by, but they unashamedly reflect the dreams and aspirations of the the U. P.'s younger generation all those years ago.

So, give a listen and decide for yourself which tunes could have been hits, if only...

Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti now a book!

The 300-page volume, which includes dozens of photographs, spotlights engaging music personalities, stressing not only rock, but blues, jazz, country and folk.

Seymour said the soft-cover book surveys the music scene with an "entertaining presentation of facts, a dash of opinion, and a bit of humor, all meant to bring a smile or nod of acknowledgement from the reader."

The writer assembled the book from weekly music columns he wrote which originally appeared in the "That's Entertainment" section of the Daily Press, published every Thursday, beginning in the summer of 2005.

The book takes a nostalgic look at Michigan's stars, local musicians and beloved international rock legends, all from a personal, Upper Peninsula perspective, Seymour noted.

Divided into seven parts, "Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti" contains many music-related stories about the local rock scene of the 60s and the U. P.'s contribution to music over the years. Not stopping there, the author also included thoughts on the many concerts he's seen as well as sections about the blues and the Beatles.

"People have been asking me to put these stories into a book for well over a year now. Virtually every week I've gotten so many great comments and emails. I finally took them seriously," he said.

The book was printed by Instantpublisher.com, the short-run publishing division of Funcraft Publishing Co., located in Collierville, Tenn.

"I hope folks have as much fun reading these stories as I've had writing them," he added. Seymour and his wife Sue own the Record Rack in downtown Escanaba.

Seymour commented: "I've enjoyed rock music and writing since I was a teenager in the 60s. I feel lucky to have been around when rock's greatest stars created their most enduring hits."

A graduate of Central Michigan University, Seymour worked for the Daily Press and Upper Peninsula Commission for Area Progress before going into the retail record business in 1985.

"Rock 'n' roll has always been integral to me and for the last 22 years I've been earning my living from it even though I don't have a musical bone in my body," Seymour noted.

Copies of "Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti" are available for $11.98 at the Record Rack, 1212 Ludington St., Escanaba, Michigan 49829 or through paypal ($11.98 plus $4.00 postage).

About me

I've enjoyed rock music and writing since I was a teenager in the 60s. I feel lucky to have been around when rock's greatest stars created their most enduring hits. At the same time I found I enjoyed writing, as well. I worked on my high school newspaper and magazine, was editor of several college publications and earned a bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University in 1973. I worked for the daily newspaper in my hometown after graduating, becoming managing editor after a few years. By the 1980s, I moved into public relations. In 1985, my wife Sue and I opened a retail music store, The Record Rack, which we still own. Rock 'n' roll has been integral to me and for the last 2O years I've been earning my living from it even though I don't have a musical bone in my body. In recent years, I've also I edited a small local magazine and launched a micro FM radio station. Now, I'm finally combining my love of writing and rock 'n' roll. I can't sing a note, but I know what I like. I'll tell you all about it when you read on. I hope you have as much enjoyment reading these installments as I've had writing them.